Martin Natano wrote: > I agree with Ingo, ls(1) shouldn't generate unsafe output. Regardless > of whether the output is to a terminal or some other file.
While POSIX is not holy law, doing what you suggest would probably be a violation. See the description of the -q option: http://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/9699919799/utilities/ls.html That combined with Stuart's mentioned legitimate uses makes me think that this could cause subtle and unexpected problems. I do see the danger of allowing raw bytestring redirection, though.
